White-collar crime refers to several types of fraud that are committed by business professionals. These crimes are not violent; instead, perpetrators rely upon deceit and concealment to divert funds and other assets for their personal gain. Examples of white-collar crimes are as follows:

Embezzlement. Involves the theft of assets that have been entrusted to a person.

Forgery. The creation of a fake legal document or the alteration of an existing one.

Insider trading. When a person has information not available to the general public and uses it to make advantageous securities trades.

Insurance fraud. The use of deception to gain a payment from an insurance provider.

Intentional misstatement of financial statements. When the financial statements are altered to present an image of the financial results or position of a business that is incorrect.

Money laundering. The process of obscuring the origins of cash, so that it appears to be legitimate.

Ponzi scheme. A deception in which early investors are paid off from funds invested by later investors, rather than from actual investment returns.

Securities fraud. The purchase or sale of securities that is based on the issuance of false information or the withholding of material information.

The "white-collar crime" name comes from the types of individuals who usually engage in it - executives, managers, staff employees (such as accountants), and so forth.